Summer Reading: Books
Nader once told me that the problem with Capitol Hill is that few people there actually know how to think. Why is that? Because they don't read books. "If you don't read books you can't think."
— Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) August 14, 2020
Everyone should read books. Good books. Timeless books. Books that are well-written, well-researched, well-edited. Where the writer is an expert or has become a respected authority.
People talk about reading books. But I'm convinced few actually do. I used to read a lot fewer. I had a lot more distractions (we'll get to that).
Back in the pre-COVID days, when we used to go to parties and networking functions, people would often ask me the standard question: So, what do you do outside of work? Like, you know, for fun?
And I’d try to reply honestly: I read a lot and then often write about it. To which the reply would be: Groan. What do you really do? That’s a cop-out.
And it’s like, no, that’s actually what I do! Being serious about reading takes copious time and focus. It's the single largest use of my time of 'what I do outside of work'.
Don't read book summaries and expect to retain anything.
Their purpose is for you to make a decision about if you should invest your time and money in reading a book.
Here is my book list. It's called My Younger Self. I’ve read every book on this list in the last 2 years. In each case, I own the book. Underlined the book. Recommend the book. I usually have notes on these books, and those notes are generally a series of quotes that I've hand type copied from the physical book.
There's a lot of people out there on the Internet that hawk book summaries. Or Tweet threads. They say 'put the ideas in your own words' and outline the arguments. No. I don't think so.
If it's a well-written book, summarizing it in your own words is often an exercise in repeating the argument in a more confusing way or to omit something important. If you are going to write something, write a reaction. Write about what you are going to do differently from what you learned from the book. Write about the connection you made between something in the book and something you experienced within the last couple of months. Write about why it's important.
Read books for a purpose for yourself.
What are you trying to achieve? How is that book/author going to help? Maybe you just want to be transported to a new reality through fiction. That's great too.
Many book recommendation lists tell you more about the recommender than about what’s best for you. Particularly lists with senior people with fancy titles. These lists are most likely what they want to be seen reading. It’s not a book club. It’s content marketing material.
That's why my book list is called My Younger Self. Because it is a list of books that helped me. If you think there are areas of my life and experience that can help you, then this is a great list! If not, maybe it isn't.